1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a shift device for a vehicle and, more particularly, to a technique for preventing or reducing a pivot of a detent pin due to contact with a shift lock member.
2. Description of Related Art
There is known a shift device for a vehicle. The shift device includes a shift lever. The shift lever includes a cylindrical shaft portion and a shift knob. The proximal end of the cylindrical shaft portion is pivotably supported inside a housing. The shift knob is fixed to the distal end of the cylindrical shaft portion. The cylindrical shaft portion has elongated holes. Each of the elongated holes extends through the peripheral wall of the cylindrical shaft portion, and is elongated in the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical shaft portion. A detent pin is inserted through the elongated holes such that both ends of the detent pin protrude from the elongated holes. An operating button is provided in the shift knob. A detent rod transmits operating force of the operating button to the detent pin. The detent rod is inserted in the cylindrical shaft portion, This is, for example, a shift device for a vehicle, described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2012-56430 (JP 2012-56430 A). In the shift device for a vehicle, described in JP 2012-56430 A, in a state where an engaging protrusion protruding from the detent rod toward the detent pin is engaged with an engaging hole provided in the detent pin, the detent pin is constantly urged toward the detent rod by a spring. Both ends of the detent pin respectively protruding from the elongated holes of the cylindrical shaft portion each are engaged with any one of detent grooves that are provided in each of detent plates provided in the housing and that correspond to shift positions. Thus, the shift lever is positioned to the any one of the shift positions.
Incidentally, there is known a shift lock device for a vehicle. When the operating button has been operated in a state where brake depression operation is not performed, the shift lock device restricts releasing operation for releasing engagement of the detent pin with the detent groove corresponding to, for example, a P position as a result of contact of a shift lock member with one end of the detent pin to block movement of the detent pin. If such a shift lock device is applied to the above-described existing shift device, the detent pin urged by the spring toward the detent rod may pivot on the contact position with the shift lock member as a fulcrum to be inclined by operating force of an operating button, transmitted via the detent rod. Because of such a pivot of the detent pin due to activation of the shift lock device, there is a possibility that the durability of the shift device decreases.